The Question, Monday 9/23/13: Which 10:00 Drama Takes Viewers Hostage?

At long last, the 2013-14 season is upon us, and premiere Monday starts things off with an all-too-familiar clash between NBC's The Voice and CBS' comedies. But the biggest intrigue this time may come in the 10:00 hour, when each network debuts its top new drama of the season. NBC gives its best timeslot to James Spader's The Blacklist, while CBS looks to keep Under the Dome's limited event series momentum rolling in the same timeslot with Dylan McDermott's Hostages. Both are fairly well-reviewed, and based on yesterday's NFL/Emmys, neither one is going to be able to point to lack of promotion as an excuse. Which 10:00 drama takes viewers hostage? That's The Question for Monday, September 23, 2013.

Recent CBS Drama Premieres

Recent NBC Drama Premieres

2.9 (Unforgettable, 9/20/11) 3.1 (Person of Interest, 9/22/11) 1.5 (NYC 22, 4/15/12) 2.5 (Vegas, 9/25/12) 3.1 (Elementary, 9/27/12) 1.8 (Golden Boy, 2/26/13) 3.3 (Under the Dome, 6/24/13)

1.6 (The Playboy Club, 9/19/11, out of 1.9 The Sing-Off) 1.8 (Prime Suspect, 9/22/11, 3.3 Whitney) 2.1 (Grimm, 10/28/11, 1.1 Chuck) 1.4 (The Firm, 1/8/12, 1.7 Dateline) 3.8 (Smash, 2/6/12, 7.7 The Voice) 2.0 (Awake, 3/1/12, 1.7 Up All Night) 4.1 (Revolution, 9/17/12, 5.1 The Voice) 1.9 (Chicago Fire, 10/10/12, 1.9 SVU) 2.0 (Deception, 1/7/13, 2.6 Biggest Loser) 0.9 (Do No Harm, 1/31/13, 1.9 Office) 1.6 (Hannibal, 4/4/13, 1.1 Go On)

Long term, I have serious doubts about both of these shows being able to succeed in the same timeslot, but I do think it's possible both could premiere well tonight. If Hostages wants to be the long-term winner, it's got to take advantage of tonight. The CBS comedy lineup should be at its most inflated, since we're meeting The Mother on How I Met Your Mother and there's the series premiere of Mom directly leading in at 9:30. I still give the edge to The Blacklist because it seems more hyped and I think The Voice will be a more compatible lead-in than comedies, but I see it being closer tonight than over the long-term.

Spread: The Blacklist beats Hostages by 0.55 points.

(Reply with "The Blacklist" if you think The Blacklist BEATS Hostages by 0.6 points or more, or with "Hostages" if you think The Blacklist BEATS Hostages by 0.5 points or less OR Hostages TIES/BEATS The Blacklist. Results based on finals to one decimal point.)

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